City MP graduates from Armed Forces scheme

Stephen Morgan MP completes programme of visits to meet troops across the UK as part of Parliamentary scheme

The Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme opens a unique window into the world of everyday life in the armed forces and the tasks they are asked to undertake on our behalf.

The objective of the scheme is to help parliamentarians understand the work of the armed forces and foster genuine personally informed contributions to participate in defence debates.

In his first year, Stephen chose to join the Royal Navy Scheme. In addition to his regular visits to HMNB Portsmouth, he met service personnel at bases across the UK including, Faslane, Plymouth, Yeovilton, the Defence Academy, and London, and visited those on deployment in Cyprus and Kenya. He’s observed peace-keeping operations, Operation Shader – the fight against ISIS in Syria, and the UK’s fleet of submarines based in Scotland.

Spending time with our troops enabled Stephen to identify a number of issues that informed his campaigning in Parliament including armed forces pay, recruitment and retention issues, cyber-warfare developments, and the black hole in the defence budget.

This year, Stephen has once again signed up to the scheme, this time joining the RAF to find out more about their work protecting our nation, in partnership with the Royal Navy.

Stephen Morgan MP, said:

“It has been a real honour to join the brave men and women of our armed forces to see their skill and commitment first hand.

As MP for the home of the Royal Navy and a proud champion of our Armed Forces, it’s been incredibly valuable to speak with and observe the operations of service personnel over the last year.

It’s something I’ll continue to do as I fight for a strong defence of our nation and proper recognition and pay for those who serve it.”

I want to thank all the people who make this scheme possible, especially those members of the armed forces who’ve hosted me and made my time so far in the programme so instructive.

AFPS hasn’t just been informative from an operational perspective, it’s been great to spend time off-duty with service personnel and hear about their daily lives and how I can support them more widely.”

Just over 30 MPs from across the House and parties ‘graduated’ from the programme. MPs and peers attended a ceremony at the National RAF Museum with the Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson and Shadow Defence Secretary, Nia Griffith.